Founded in 2017, Lemon Perfect is a lemon water brand backed by Beyoncé and an extensive list of athlete investors, including Blake Griffin, Kyle Kuzma, Nick Young, Spencer Dinwiddie, Josh Hart, Meyers Leonard, Damian Jones, and De'Anthony Melton.

Through these athletes and other investors, they raised $6.6M in 2020, closed their $31M Series A in 2022, and followed that with an almost $37M round in 2023. This brought the company’s valuation up to around $143M.

Last week, they raised $9.7M. However, as reported by Bev.Net, the company experienced an “investor-led shakeup” which caused the removal of their founder, former college basketball coach, Yanni Hufnagel, as well as their CEO and CMO.

Following their 2023 round, the company experienced multiple setbacks in production due to a “flawed co-packer switch” and the continued slow growth triggered fatigue for investors.

Despite a lot of investing at earlier valuations, it’s a long journey towards exit. Hoping Lemon Perfect gets on the right path so our guys can get returns!!

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It feels like there are almost unlimited ways AI could touch sports. A good place to start is with what matters most to fans, athletes, and teams: performance.

Specifically, how AI might be used alongside virtual reality.

VR can feel like old news, but I still think there’s something there. Not as a replacement for practice, and not as a perfect replica of the game, but as a way to get visual and cognitive reps without increasing the physical toll.

This first grabbed my attention when I came across Cognilize and their work with Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders. Daniels has talked about rehearsing situations at increased speeds, around 1.75x, to challenge his mental processing.

Film is valuable, but it’s passive. You’re studying the game from the outside. VR, even in its current and imperfect form, puts you inside the decision-making process. You can’t truly simulate the chaos or physical feel, but you’re seeing spacing, timing, and movement in a way film can’t fully capture.

Where this gets more interesting is when you think about pairing VR with AI. Not AI as a prediction engine or a replacement for coaching, but as infrastructure. Tools that help surface patterns, tendencies, and situations faster, and translate them into usable reps.

The NFL is already comfortable using AI in other areas, particularly around injury prevention and load management through initiatives like the Digital Athlete program. Performance learning feels like a separate but adjacent step. Still early, still limited, but interesting.

This doesn’t fully recreate practice or games, but it can build on established preparation techniques. Visualization and mental rehearsal are research-backed and already fixtures in many athletes’ routines. VR simply offers a more immersive way to do that, especially as the season progresses and physical load is managed.

The pro sports market will never be the largest AI market. But as a proving ground for tools built around pattern recognition, rehearsal, and performing under speed and stress, it’s an excellent place to start.

Grüns is a health gummy snack brand that uses over 60 ingredients to promote gut and brain health, and energy and immunity.

Snowboarding legend Shaun White is an investor and paid spokesperson for the brand - "As a former pro athlete, I've always looked for ways to stay sharp, feel my best, and fuel my body without overcomplicating it.”

If you’re building in CPG or the health snacks space, please check out https://athletesandassets.com/company/register